Proficio Capital Partners LLC Invests $1 Million in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 14,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,000,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SWX. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,979 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 937 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its position in Southwest Gas by 0.6% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 27,125 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,001,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its position in Southwest Gas by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

SWX opened at $75.18 on Friday. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $5.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.32, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.18. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.35 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Profile

Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, distributes and transports natural gas in Arizona, Nevada, and California. The company operates through Natural Gas Distribution, Utility Infrastructure Services, and Pipeline and Storage segments. It also provides trenching, installation, and replacement of underground pipes, as well as maintenance services for energy distribution systems.